Garland of Emeralds: A Darkness There, and Nothing Flash-Fiction Nonet
by LA Knight
Summary: Loki gives his story to his brother in broken pieces, a tale of darkness, torture, love, and loss. Is it a true one? If so, what of the mysterious mutant woman, Thea? What might she have endured during her shared captivity with Prince Loki? A collection of nine flash-fictions from the "Darkness There, and Nothing..." universe.


**_Author's Note:_**_ a "nonet" is a group of nine objects. I chose to do nine drabbles for the Nine Realms. I wrote this for Valentine's Day as well as to tide you guys over while my Pat. Re. On. Darkness updates catch up to my FF Darkness updates. Hope you enjoy._

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**A Garland of Emeralds**

**A **_**Darkness There and Nothing…**_** Flash-Fiction Nonet**

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**_Who's There?_**

She wouldn't freak out.  
She would _not_ freak out.  
Ohgawd, she was fuh-REAKING out.

It was dark in the cell, so very dark.  
Were there spiders? Roaches?  
What if there was some alien zombie roach or something?  
She had to get out, she had to get out!

Screaming, fear fueling her rage,  
Thea hurled herself at where she thought the door was.  
Slammed her fists against the cold, unfeeling metal.  
She had to get out!  
She had to get this stupid collar off _now!_

The world was so cold without her power.  
Her head felt muffled, stifled, closed off.  
She couldn't connect to…anything.  
Alone. She was alone, even in her head.

She screamed at that, raged, threatened to destroy this prison,  
Hoping the screams would push down the panic, the loneliness in her head.  
And then…

"Who's there?"

Thea whipped around, staring into the impenetrable dark.  
A voice.  
Someone in the cell?  
No, on the other side of the wall.

"Who's there?"

Again, a feeble croak, a man's rasp.  
Thea threw herself down beside the wall,  
Feeling along it,  
Searching for bars, a grate, a window.  
Flesh smacked the other side of the stone just beside her head.

"Who's there?"

A person.  
There was a person there, on the other side of the wall.  
She wasn't alone anymore.

"Hello."

**_Green_**

The first time she sees his face  
She suddenly can't catch her breath.

He's _beautiful_.

But it is his eyes that draw her, hold her.  
Trap her.  
They are so very, very green.  
Sharp as malachite knives,  
Wet as raindrops on blades of grass.

He doesn't seem to realize tears drip slowly down his cheeks.  
How long has it been since he's seen another person?

She stares into those emerald eyes,  
Desperate to reach out,  
Wishing she could touch his mind,  
Aching to touch his hand,  
But she can only look into those eyes through the crack in the wall  
And give him her name.

**_Rainbow_**

"Eeeaaat it," Thea insists,  
Holding out a palm full of tiny rainbow-colored spheres.  
"Taste the rainbow, Loki!"

He eyes the things in her hand.  
"What are they?"

"Skittles! Eeeaaat them!"  
She shakes the fistful of candy at him.  
It rattles like beads in a bowl.  
"They're sooo good! Pleeeaaase?"

He gives her a look of exasperated fondness.  
How can he say no?  
It means so much to her.  
He can do so little for her in this prison.  
He can at least try some confection she presses on him.

"All right. One."

He takes a green one from her hand.  
Pops it in his mouth.  
He cannot describe the flavor.  
Tart, but sugary, sharp on his tongue.  
He eyes the handful again.

Thea grins.  
"Would you like another one?"

He takes a second green one.

**_Kiss_**

He kisses her, shutting down the babble,  
Stilling the sudden fear that she'd ruined everything,  
Smoothing away every thought with the warm press of his mouth

Loki, Loki, Loki, _Loki, _**_Loki_**_**  
**_His name echoes in her head  
His hands burn through her dress, gentle heat

The illusion should be slipping  
But somehow, someway, she holds it together

She loves him

Impossibly  
Desperately  
Ravenously  
Hopelessly  
Helplessly

More than cake, more than confetti,  
More than chocolate, more than rainbows

More than sunlight, more than fresh air  
More than food, more than freedom

More than anything  
More than everything  
And ohgawd it is terrifying and wonderful

_Ohhh, boy, I am in sooo much trouble,_  
Thea thinks to herself

But Loki is kissing her  
And she never, _ever_ wants him to stop

**_Proposal_**

There are so many reasons to say _no_

He's a prince  
She's a commoner

He has a boatload of emotional baggage  
(And hers might actually be worse,  
She's just way better at hiding it)

He's from another planet, another galaxy,  
She's from Earth and wants to go home

He's an alien, a (kind of short) Frost Giant  
She's just a regular little old human  
(With some interesting mutant powers)

They're trapped in little Hell-boxes  
Prisoners of scabrous, hostile aliens

But she loves him more than anything and everything  
And he wants to marry her

Screw all the reasons to say _no_  
She says _yes_

**_Wedding_**

How is she supposed to have a wedding in _here?__  
_It's a freaking box  
It's a prison cell  
She's been wearing the same five shirts for six months without the use of a Laundromat

Don't panic.  
Do not panic.  
Necessity is the mother of invention.  
Or something like that.  
Whatever, she'll figure this out.

First step, take stock.  
Some hand sanitizer,  
Chapstick,  
Some lotion that smells like flowers,  
Some water,  
A comb,  
A torn but still wearable white shirt.

She washes the grime from her face as best she can,  
Dabs lotion on the parts of her face that itch with dryness.  
Smooths Strawberry Skittle-flavored Chapstick over her lips.  
Rips the comb through her hair because this is taking too long.  
Sniffs the t-shirt.  
Maybe she's been in this alien box for too long  
But it doesn't smell too bad.  
She dons it.

As a kid, she'd thought about getting married.  
Figured it wouldn't happen after years of romantic suckage.  
But now she has Loki.  
She _is_ getting married.  
In a box, in a torn t-shirt, without even the luxury of a shower.  
Still cool though, somehow.

She has a surprise for him.  
She's been practicing for months.  
It won't help them escape, but she's finally managed  
To cast an illusion outside of someone's mind.  
So when she crawls through the hole in the wall,  
She's wearing her torn shirt,  
Her hair is styled with a broken butterfly clip missing a few teeth,  
But the shirt and jeans are covered by the illusion of an actual wedding dress.

She will never, ever forget the look of wonder on his face.  
In that moment, she absolutely feels like a love goddess.

The golden apple tastes pretty good, too.

**_Morning I_**

Loki snaps awake  
There is an echo to his breath in his cell  
Someone is there with him  
He tries very carefully to shift, feigning sleep  
His arm is caught under a warm weight  
He blinks  
Risks turning his head  
His heart stutters in his chest

It was a risk, marrying Thea  
But worth it all the same  
It was a risk letting her cuddle him the night before  
After laying together for the very first time  
But it had felt worth it at the time

Only now does he realize what danger they're in  
She is asleep in his arms,  
Head pillowed on his shoulder,  
And she is so very beautiful

But if the Chitauri were to come...  
If they were to find her here...  
What would become of them?

With regret, Loki kisses her softly awake  
He would love to wake up every morning to her,  
To this small joy in a world of despair,  
But it isn't safe.  
It will never be safe until they can be free of this place.

Silently, watching Thea try to stretch in the cramped cell,  
Warming under the glow of her welcoming smile,  
He vows once again  
That he will set them both free.  
Somehow.

**_Morning II_**

Thea wakes slowly the first morning in the new cell  
If it even _is_ morning  
And even though the room is a room and not a box  
Even though it has a bed,  
And a table and food,  
And luxury of luxuries, an actual freaking bathtub  
It's still a prison cell  
The love goddess isn't stupid  
She knows what's up

But for just a moment, none of it matters  
Because she wakes lying on her side in the fluffy bed  
Loki lying next to her, facing her  
Their eyes open together and it is the first time  
The very first time ever  
That she has been able to wake up next to him  
Able to actually see him  
Able to trace all of his adorable so-called Martian features with her eyes  
Able to study the actual for-real dimple in his left cheek  
Able to see his eyes turn from malachite cloudy with sleep to warm emerald

She will always, always treasure that  
She won't thank Captain Leprosy for it, though  
The scabies alien can choke  
But she can smile in this moment  
And watch an answering smile curl Loki's lips  
And of course, at that point, she just has to kiss him

**_Pain_**

_You think you know pain?_

The Other's claws dig into Loki's scalp.  
The rage twists in him, writhing like snakes.

He closes his eyes,  
Focuses on his memories of his wife  
Thea, clever and sweet and sorrowing and bold and afraid.  
He counts every freckle on her nose,  
Replays every silly song about monologues and poisoning pigeons,  
Hears the echoes of "booyacashah!" bouncing off the inside of his skull like a child's ball.

Focuses on memories of his daughter,  
Sophie, small and perfect and helpless and inquisitive and so reckless it terrifies him.  
He counts her freckles, too,  
And loses himself in those vivid emerald eyes so like his own.

He is doing this for them.  
He cannot let himself forget it.  
Cannot allow that accursed staff to _make _him forget.

_If you should fail us, you will beg for something as sweet as pain._

If he fails the Chitauri and his own plans fall through,  
He will beg for nothing.  
He will simply end his own life,  
And make his way in the afterworld to his wife and daughter.

But he will _not_ fail.


End file.
